A single Walmart's low wages could cost taxpayers $900,000 Per YEAR http://huff.to/18Dav24
Sources:
- http://laborcenter.berkeley.edu/retail/walmart.pdf
- http://sandiegofreepress.org/2012/10/the-starting-line-local-labor-activist-banned-from-all-walmart-stores/
- http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2012/06/biggest-us-food-stamp-recipient-wal.html
- http://www.goodjobsfirst.org/corporate-subsidy-watch/hidden-taxpayer-costs
Blending classical literature with the computer technology of subterranean imaging, scientists have made an astonishing discovery – namely, there is a tenth level of Hell!
In the 14th century, Dante, a renown Italian poet, detailed a horrendous descent through nine layers of eternal damnation that he had charted, with the bottom floor reserved for the most wretched of sinners. Yet, apparently in recognition of today's realities, Satan has had to add a new basement to his punishing Inferno – a special level of Hell to accommodate the top executives and profiteers of Walmart.
Their sins are many and well-documented: Paying poverty wages, using child labor, making products in global sweatshops, cheating US workers, bribing public officials, bankrupting local competitors, producing shoddy products, etc. In recent weeks, though, the massive chain's bosses earned their assignment to Beelzebub's basement by their abominable performance in Bangladesh.
First came their deliberate choice to profit from their suppliers' abuses of powerless garment workers paid $37 a month. Second was their intentional turning of a blind eye to the blatantly unsafe factories they use, including the hellhole that collapsed in April, killing more than 1,100 workers. Third was their diabolically-shameful denial of responsibility, claiming that the dead workers were not making clothes for Walmart on the day of the collapse.
This is Jim Hightower saying… And now, they have fiendishly refused to join nearly 40 other global retail giants in an agreement to help finance such minimal safety upgrades as putting fire escapes on Bangladesh's factories and allowing rigorous, independent inspections. Walmart executives explained that non-binding, unenforceable, self-regulation would be best for all concerned. And you could hear Old Lucifer cackling as he prepared their rooms in his new, tenth level of Hell.
5 New Reasons Not to Buy Matzah at Walmart
Before you succumb to those everyday low prices, here are some things you should know.
Photo Credit: Frying Pan News
If you’re like me, right now you may be scrambling to stock up on all of your Passover essentials. So what if I told you that you could get 12 boxes of matzah – more than enough to cover the eight days and nights of breadless revelry – for just over $40 bucks?
Ah, but there’s a catch: You’ll have to buy this miracle matzah pak at Walmart. Moral dilemma? You bet.
Last year we provided a short list of reasons you might want to think twice about a Walmart matzah binge. We wish we could report that Walmart had cleaned up its act since then, but alas, the world’s largest retailer has racked up a series of alleged corporate crimes and indiscretions that would make a pharaoh blush.
So before you succumb to those everyday low prices, here are five more reasons not to buy matzah at Walmart:
1) Hunger Strike: Remember those passages in the haggadah about the bread of affliction? When workers stop eating to protest conditions, you know things are really bad. That’s what happened in Cambodia earlier this month, when workers who sew clothes sold at Walmart staged a hunger strike because they weren’t being paid the extremely meager wages they were owed.
2) Forced Labor: If this doesn’t hit close to home, you really need to brush up on your Passover narrative. Last summer Walmart suspended one of its seafood suppliers after an investigation discovered that workers were being forced to work up to 24 hours consecutively and had been locked in the plant. The same team found workplace violations at a dozen other Walmart food suppliers. Many of the aggrieved employees were foreign workers – strangers in a strange land indeed.
3) Fatal Factory Fire: Last November, in a tragedy eerily reminiscent of the Shirtwaist Triangle Factory Fire of 1911, 112 workers died in a blaze at an Indonesian factory that supplied clothes to Walmart. The New York Times discovered soon after that Walmart had played a leading role in blocking efforts to address safety concerns at Bangladeshi factories.
4) Quashing Freedom of Speech: As you prepare your Passover meditation on the meaning of freedom, keep in mind that among the most basic of liberties is the right to speak freely. This is not a right enjoyed by Walmart employees, which is why last December Walmart workers in 10 countries participated in a global protest against the company’s use of intimidation and firings to silence disgruntled workers.
5) Bribery Scandal: Last April, the New York Times broke the story that Walmart had allegedly covered up a bribery scandal in Mexico. The corporation’s Mexican subsidiary reportedly gave tens of millions of dollars to government officials to grease the wheels for store development there, and Walmart’s head honchos back home in Bentonville turned a blind eye. What’s the connection to Passover? We’re not sure, but we know your bubbi would not approve.
Costco Proves Republicans Wrong By Paying a Living Wage and Watching Profits Soar
Costco is proving Republicans and the Wal-Mart wrong by paying workers a living wage while also earning record profits.
While Wal-Mart experienced February sales that were considered, “total disaster,” Costco’s earnings for the second quarter of the year climbed 39%. The New York Times reported, “Costco Wholesale’s net income for its second quarter climbed 39 percent as it pulled in more money from membership fees, sales improved and it recorded a large tax benefit.”
Costco CEO Craig Jelinek openly supports raising the minimum wage to $11.50 an hour, “At Costco, we know that paying employees good wages makes good sense for business. We pay a starting hourly wage of $11.50 in all states where we do business, and we are still able to keep our overhead costs low. An important reason for the success of Costco’s business model is the attraction and retention of great employees. Instead of minimizing wages, we know it’s a lot more profitable in the long term to minimize employee turnover and maximize employee productivity, commitment and loyalty. We support efforts to increase the federal minimum wage.”
Costco is proof that the Republican idea that labor must be stomped on in order for our economy to prosper is wrong. It is possible for companies to earn record profits while respecting their workers and paying them a living wage. Wal-Mart embodies the conservative ideology that the country functions best when wealth is concentrated at the top. To match the Walton family’s fortune, an average Wal-Mart employee would have to work for the company for 7 million years. This model is what Republicans are advocating for the entire country, and it is failing to lead to prosperity.
Given Costco’s record profits, Wal-Mart’s blaming of the payroll tax and gas prices for their decline in sales doesn’t wash. Costco’s customers also faced higher gas prices and payroll taxes, but their sales were up six percent during the first quarter of the year.
Despite what both Wal-Mart and Republicans have been saying, companies can prosper and still have a conscience. When companies pay a living wage, workers benefit. When workers make more money, they spend more money. When people spend more money, the economy is stronger. When the economy is stronger, the nation as a whole benefits.
The economic virtuous circle that Republicans and their corporate benefactors thought they killed is alive, well, and living at Costco.
Here's something to think about.
QuikTrip, Trader Joe’s, and Costco operate on a different model, says Ton. "They start with the mentality of seeing employees as assets to be maximized," she says. As a result, their stores boast better operational efficiency and customer service, and those result in better sales.
Walmart, on the other hand, treats their employees like crap, and still makes tons of money. But everyone hates Walmart and loves Trader Joe's and Costco.
The Economic Case for Paying Your Cashiers $40K a Year »
Companies like Trader Joe's and Costco are proving that the decision to offer low wages is a choice, not an economic necessity.
Sam's kids grew up privileged and mean. That is what happened
You, as a tax payer, subside Wal-mart because 80% of their employees are on some federal/state subsistance.
Career advice.
Police: Oregon panhandlers raking in the green »
A police survey says panhandlers outside Wal-Mart in Coos Bay can make $300 a day. Inside, it takes a clerk a week to make that much.
Pit Bulls
http://www.ricjr.org/pit%20bulls/
Given the content of my site, and the wingnutty pious predilections of the American public and government, and the enmity and known censorious habits of Christians and creationists, how long do you think this place would stay up if SOPA/PIPA went into effect?
"Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare." ~ Japanese Proverb
They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.
~ Carl W. Buechner
See my other blog:
"Love your own, leave others alone,"
it's a good principle for kids to learn.
"If dogs don't go to heaven, when I die I want to go wherever they went."
-- Attributed to Will Rogers
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
10 REASONS TO ADOPT AN ADULT DOG
1. Have you really thought about what getting a puppy means? If not, CLICK HERE!
2. Puppies are not housebroken! Most people work during the day and are gone for 8 hours or more at a time. Puppies need to go out on a regular schedule so they have frequent opportunities to eliminate where you want them to. Puppies can't wait for the boss to finish his meeting or the kids to come home from school. Adult dogs can "hold it" for longer periods and, often, a Rescue will have the dog housebroken before it is adopted.
3. Intact Underwear. Puppies chew! You can count on at least 10 mismatched pairs of socks and a variety of unmentionables rendered to the "rag bag" before a puppy cuts all its teeth. Shoes? yes, puppies like to chew them also. Expect holes in your carpet (along with urine stains), backs and pages missing from books, stuffing exposed in couches, and at least one dead remote control. No matter how well you watch them, it will happen. This is a puppy's job! An adult dog can usually have the run of the house without destroying it.
4. A Good Night's Sleep. A puppy can be very demanding at 2am and 4am and 6am. Puppies naturally miss their littermates and a stuffed animal is not a substitute for puppy pile with littermates in the dark of night. Prefer peace and quiet, an adult rescue dog usually sleeps through the night?
5. Finish the Newspaper. With a puppy loose in the house, you will NOT be able to relax when you get home from work. Do you think kids ever really feed the dog? Clean up the messes? Walk in the pouring rain every hour to get the dog housetrained? If so, you probably have a severe case of denial. An adult dog will generally sit calmly beside you as your workday stress flows away and your blood pressure lowers as you pet it.
6. Easier Vet Trips. Puppies need a series of puppy shots and fecals, then a rabies shot, then surgery to spay/neuter them, and generally a trip or two to the emergency vet after eating something dangerous. (All of this usually adds up to substantially more than you paid for the dog!) When adopting an adult dog, the adoption fee should get you a dog with current vaccinations, this is altered, heartworm negative and on a preventative, at the minimum.
7. What You See Is What You Get. How big will the dog get? What will its temperament be? Is it easily trained? What will its personality be like as an adult? Will it be hyperactive? Adult dogs are, to steal a term from Internet lingo, WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get.) All of your questions are easily answered, because the dog is already an adult. You can pick large or small; active or couch potato; goofy or brilliant; sassy or sweet. Further, the rescuer and/or foster homes can help guide you in choosing just the right match for you. (Rescues are FULL of puppies who became the wrong match as they got older!)
8. Unscarred Children (and Adults). If a puppy does not teeth on your possesions, it will teeth on you and your children. Rescuers often get calls from panicked parents sure their dog is about to seriously injure their children. It usually turns out the puppy is just doing what puppies do, i.e., mouth or nip. Parents, too emotional to see the difference, just want to get rid of the dog. A growing puppy is going to put anything and everything in their mouth. It must be taught bite inhibition. As the puppy grows, the puppy's jaws become stronger and its teeth are replaced by its adult teeth. The mouthing and nipping it did as a puppy now can have serious consequences. Far better to get an adult dog that has "been there, done that, moved on."
9. Matchmaker Make Me A Match. Puppy love is emotionally appealing. They are so cute! But, in reality, cute is not a sufficient reason to get a pet, a pet that will probably live 15+ years. It may be cute, but cute can grow up to be hyperactive. It may be not want to share your home with anyone else, including your spouse, children, or other animals. It may want to be a couch potato, when the main reason you got the dog was to run with you every day. Pet/owner mis-matches are the MAIN REASONS owners "give-up" their pets. 60% of the animals in shelters nationwide are there for this reason. Good rescuers extensively evaluate of dogs and applicants to insure both will be happy with one another until death do them part.
10. Instant Companion. With an adult dog, you have a dog that can go everywhere and do anything with you NOW. You don't have to wait until the puppy grows up and hope it will like to do what you to do with it. With an adult rescue, you select the dog most compatible with you. You can find one that travels well, loves to play with your friends' dogs, has excellent house manners, etc. You can come home after a long day's work and spend your time on a relaxing walk, ride, or swim with your new best friend (rather than cleaning up after a small puppy.)
11. Bond - Rescue Dog Bond. Dogs that have been uprooted from their happy homes or have not had the best start in life are likely to bond very closely to their new owner. Yes, dogs that have lost families through death, divorce or lifestyle change can go through a mourning process; however, once they become attached to their new family, they seem to want to please as much as possible to make sure they are never homeless again! Those dogs that are just learning about the good life and good people seem to bond even deeper. They know what life on the streets, life on the end of a chain, or worse, is about, and they revel and blossom in a nurturing, loving environment. Most rescues make exceptional, extremely loyal companions.
Sadly, some people seem to think dogs that end up in rescue are genetically or behaviorally inferior. In reality, rescues get dogs that have outlived their novelty with impulsive owners who really did not have the time, energy or willingness to shoulder either the responsibility or expense required to be a good dog owner.
Choosing an adult rescue over a puppy does not guarantee you will never have any problems with a new pet, it just increases the probability that you won't. Of course, with any new pet, there is an adjustment period while the dog learns what you expect of it. The difference is that an adult dog, specially chosen for various traits compatible with you and your home situation, are not having to learn as much as a growing puppy, so they usually fit into their new families very quickly. For most of us, an adult dog is much more suited to our needs than a puppy.
Cute as they are, puppies are a tremendous responsibility and, with the busy schedules that most of us have, impossible to housebreak completely, socialize well, and train adequately. If you are not able or willing to do what is necessary to raise a puppy correctly, you may end up wanting to surrender a dog yourself!
Adopting an adult rescue can be the best decision, and addition to your family, that you ever make. Rescue a dog and get a devoted friend for life! Go ahead, do a "GOOD DEED," adopt a dog in need of a home. Give a dog a chance it otherwise would not have. But, beyond doing a "good deed", do yourself a favor and adopt an adult dog.
"Sometimes in life it is most wise to behave like a bridge: Don’t judge the person who comes to you; let him come and pass! Behave like a bridge!”
~ Mehmet Murat ildan
"Laws control the lesser man... Right conduct controls the greater one." ~ Mark Twain
"One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors" ~ Plato
Smallest Galaxy Ever Found
Many More Minis May Be "Just Beyond Our Ability to Detect"
A Dinobird's Shades of Feathers
Extensive x-rays of the ancient bird Archaeopteryxreveal a previously unseen pattern in its feather pigments.
When Booze and Cars Do Mix
Scotland's whisky industry churns out a sobering amount of waste, but it may eventually feed a heady biofuels market.
Light Paths Reveal Water Currents
Joel James Devlin Makes Haunting Images of Night Landscapes
The Antarctic's New Way to Melt
Ice shelves lose more mass through melting where the ice meets the sea than by shedding icebergs, a new study says.
Fact of the Day
More than 20 percent of men and 10 percent of women say they've forgotten their wedding anniversary at least once.
Weird Tube of the Day: The Best-Worst Phone Conversation in History of Cinema
Check out this awkwardly scripted dialogue scene from an unidentified 1980s South Indian film. It is one of the most dramatic phone conversations in film history.
The Art Of Tea - Steep Time
The last tea timer site I shared didn’t work for all our viewers, so I went in search of a site that would have the information you’d need to properly brew a cup of tea that was very bookmarkable. This way it easily becomes a reference.
I found this amazing chart from the Art of Tea and whole lot more too! First let’s talk about the chart, which is why I’ve brought you all here! It lists: tea type, water temperature, amount per 6-8 oz. serving, and steep time. You just look at the type of tea you have, and then look across the chart to find all the information you need. It might not be a built in timer, but it certainly has the information you need.
So that alone is a great reason to bookmark the site. You can reference the chart anytime you need to then. But, this site is filled with awesome tea information. On the left side of the chart is the Learning Column! I was happy to see that there is a whole section devoted to questions about the different types of tea, water quality, terms, tea ceremonies and more!
Just click the question you’d like to see the answer for (I chose what is pu-erh tea, because I’d never heard of it.) and you’ll get in-depth answers to the question. For example: I learned where pu-erh tea is from, how it is grown, how it is harvested, how it is prepared and served, and even how to drink it properly.
This is an awesome tea resource, go check it out, and then bookmark it for future reference.
http://www.artoftea.com/learn_about_tea/steeptime.html
SUPREME COURT: CORPORATIONS CANNOT OWN YOUR GENES
On Thursday, June 13, 2013, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a highly anticipated decision in the case of Association of Molecular Pathology...
read more
6 CONTROVERSIAL REASONS A ‘SIN TAX’ ON JUNK FOOD COULD WORK
A contentious article published in the June edition of Mayo Clinic Proceedings looks at how “sin taxes” – taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, sugary beverages...
read more
BEAR BILE COMPANY CANCELS PLANS FOR EXPANSION FOLLOWING OUTCRY
Animal advocates in China are celebrating a victory for moon bears after a bear bile manufacturer pulled its controversial application for a public...
read more
Meet Nastygirl, Germany's most beautiful cow
A doe-eyed look would not have won over judges at a contest in Germany this week: it was for cows only. The bovine beauties, 250 of them, even had their own hairdressers at the annual German Holstein Show in Oldenburg: "That way one can display the veins better," said stylist Astrid Ostkämper. There's more from Spiegel.
Amid violent protest crackdown, Sao Paolo cop smashes his own car's window
From Sao Paolo, where the the cops are violently attacking protesters, a video of a cop smashing his own police-car window, presumably to blame it on the protesters later.
Policial Quebra Vidro da Própria Viatura - São Paulo 13/6/2013
And here's a glimpse of the Sao Paolo police's advanced media strategy.
Evil parking inspector jailed — A parking inspector in Britain pretended to have been struck by a disobedient motorist, thereby earning 4 months in jail when CCTV footage exposed his lies. "The power of being a traffic warden has gone to your head," the Judge told him. [The Shropshire Star]
I'm very excited to announce that we have a new addition to the Butterfly Rewards store! We have partnered with SEE Turtles, part of the Ocean...
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DAILY CUTE: HUSKY SINGS TO SOOTHE CRYING BABY
This dog knew just the thing to do to calm his crying baby friend. This husky has serious talent! Anybody need a babysitter? Check Back Daily for More...
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TOP 10 REASONS TO LEAVE PIGS OFF THE MENU
It’s not just Wilber from our much loved childhood tale Charlotte’s Web that is ‘some pig’. Believe it or not, there are a lot...
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VICTORY! PLAN B IS OVER THE COUNTER TO WOMEN AND GIRLS OF ALL AGES
On Monday, the Obama administration ended it’s attempt to restrict access to emergency contraception. Yay for having control over your own body!...
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CONNECTICUT PASSES ‘HOMELESS PERSON’S BILL OF RIGHTS’ LAW
Connecticut is on the cusp of enacting a major new law to protect people who are homeless from discrimination.
read more
NEW ZEALAND PRESSURED TO SAVE WORLD’S RAREST DOLPHINS
One of the smallest, and rarest, marine mammals in the world, Hector’s dolphins, are found only in the shallow coastal waters off of New Zealand, but they...
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SNOUTLESS DOG GETS HERO’S WELCOME IN THE PHILIPPINES
After spending eight months in the U.S. undergoing two operations, a dog named Kabang has returned home to the Philippines to a hero's welcome.
read more
IT’S DÉJÀ VU FOR NEW ENGLAND’S FISHING FLEET
Peter Baker and Lee Crockett take a look at the problem of overfishing in New England and suggest ways ahead.
read more
5 INSTANCES OF VICTIM-BLAMING THAT WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO SCREAM
She shouldn’t have worn such a short skirt! She shouldn’t have been drinking! She shouldn’t have led him on! Why is it that whenever a...
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ARE YOU HARBORING ‘CRAZY’ TECH DESTROYING ANTS?
Is your television unexpectedly on the fritz? Did your laptop suddenly stop working? If you live in the Southern United States, it could just be...
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Could Texas, where Democrats did not exactly go out of their way to gain any of the state's 38 electoral votes in 2012, be truly poised to be a...
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19 ANIMALS FOUND IN HORRIBLE CONDITIONS AT MISLEADING ‘DOG RESCUE’
Jessica Ankiel seemed to run a loving rescue service out of her home, using Facebook and other websites to adopt out puppies and receive ones who needed...
read more
OREGON MAKES IT MORE DIFFICULT TO REFUSE VACCINATION. AND THAT’S A GOOD THING.
Last week, the Oregon senate passed a bill that would make it more difficult for parents to refuse to vaccinate their children. This is a very good thing....
read more
Portraits Of People Wrapped In Rubber Bands
Photographer Wes Naman is no stranger to the world of weird pain inducing photography in the most hilarious way possible. He swept over the web once with his series of people wrapped in Scotch Tape, and now Wes is at it again with a new series of portraits of musicians encaged in rubber bands, while wearing a band T.
Hang in There, Muffler
Bird Bath, Bird Bath in a Dish
Twist-tie Plugs
Nothing to Worry About
Indeed.com: Job Search
http://www.indeed.com
"Job Search by Indeed. One search. All jobs. Search millions of jobs from thousands of job boards, newspapers, classifieds and company websites onIndeed.com."
Justices, 9-0, Bar Patenting Human Genes
By ADAM LIPTAK
The ruling will shape the course of research and testing, and it may alter the willingness of businesses to invest in understanding genetic material.
Document: The OpinionAfter Patent Ruling, Availability of Gene Tests Could Broaden
By ANDREW POLLACK
The Supreme Court's decision in effect ends a nearly two-decade monopoly by Myriad Genetics on genes that correlate with increased risk of some cancers.
Video: Which Genes Can Be Patented?
U.S. Is Said to Plan to Send Weapons to Syrian Rebels
By MARK MAZZETTI, MICHAEL R. GORDON and MARK LANDLER
The Obama administration, concluding that the Syrian government used chemical weapons against the rebels, will begin supplying the opposition for the first time with small arms and ammunition, officials said.
Syrian Forces Seen Stepping Up Air Attacks on Rebels
"There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it."- Oscar Wilde
A peptide to protect brain function
Posted: 13 Jun 2013 08:22 AM PDT
Medical researchers have developed a new peptide, called NAP or Davunetide, that has the capacity to both protect and restore critical cell functions in the brain. Her findings indicate that NAP could be an effective tool in combating effects of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, ALS, and Parkinson's.
First major study of suicide motivations to advance prevention
Posted: 13 Jun 2013 06:23 AM PDT
A new study sheds important new light on why people attempt suicide and provides the first scientifically tested measure for evaluating the motivations for suicide.
Volunteering reduces risk of hypertension in older adults
Posted: 13 Jun 2013 06:23 AM PDT
It turns out that helping others can also help you protect yourself from high blood pressure. New shows that older adults who volunteer for at least 200 hours per year decrease their risk of hypertension, or high blood pressure, by 40 percent. The study suggests that volunteer work may be an effective non-pharmaceutical option to help prevent the condition. Hypertension affects an estimated 65 million Americans and is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease.
Some people think it's holding on that makes one strong- sometimes it's letting go.
~Unknown
Retired American flags discover new life in final salute to veterans
The Sturtevant Funeral Home in Portsmouth collects flags that are no longer worthy of display and disposes of them by draping them across the casket of a veteran being cremated.
Virginia Beach fire highlights neighborhood's poor accessIf the Economy Is Back, Why Are Wages Still So Low?
By Kevin Drum
Five years after the Great Recession began, the US economy appears to be rebounding a bit. But two recent bits of evidence suggest that the impact of the recession on ordinary workers may have been even worse than we thought—and that the impact of future recessions might be worse too. [READ MORE]
Elderly Horse, Abused for Years, Saved and Taken to New Home
The Canadian Voice for Animals Foundation in Argentina recently seized a horse in the middle of city traffic, and not a moment too soon. The 20-year-old...
Paterson Panorama: 1901
Circa 1901. "Paterson, N.J., from Water Works Park." Lovely Paterson, Pearl of the Passaic. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Co.
School Play: 1940
Feb. 9, 1940. "Middlesex County Girls Vocational School, Woodbridge, New Jersey. Household management porch, horizontal. Alexander Merchant & Son, architect." Large-format acetate negative by Samuel H. Gottscho.
The Case of the Parked Packard: 1939
An unlabeled photo of cars parked next to train tracks from the FSA archive taken around 1939. Who can pinpoint the location?
Like Family: 1951
1951, somewhere in the Southeast. "Negro maids and their white employers' babies." Photo by John Vachon for a Look magazine assignment on "The South" in what could have been a prologue to "The Help."
Over The Line, An Art Show Tribute to the Coen Brothers at Ltd. Art Gallery in Seattle
By Justin Page
“The Seven Sins of Coen’s Cinema” by Augie Pagan
Over The Line is a group art show at Ltd. Art Gallery in Seattle featuring a collection of original artwork “paying tribute
to the many incredible films of the legendary Coen brothers.” The show opened on Friday, June 7, 2013 and will run through Sunday, July 14, 2013. You can still RSVP for the event online via Facebook.
“Warthog From Hell” by Ryan Wood (Raising Arizona)
“The Dude Abides” by Chet Phillips (The Big Lebowski)
“True Grit” by 100% Soft (True Grit)
“What Heart?” by Aaron Jasinski (Millers Crossing)
“CALL IT!” by Wade Lageose (No Country For Old Men)
“Not A Good Man” by Todd Spence (Inside Llewyn Davis)
“H.I.” by Geoff Trapp (Raising Arizona)
images via Ltd. Art Gallery and credited artists
Seinfeld Theme Slowed Down 1200%
The classic Seinfeld opening theme is slowed down 1200% in this video created by Seinfeld2000, a hilarious Twitter account that pretends Seinfeld was never canceled and takes place in the current day.
TRAVEL
The world's most expensive RV
If you happen to have a few million dollars lying around and are looking to hit the open road for aNational Lampoon-style road trip, or just to evade the IRS, you're going to want to check out Marchi Mobile's eleMMent Palazzo. This rolling mansion is the world's most expensive RV clocking in at around $3 million. And it includes everything from a wireless command center and retractable rooftop deck to a master bedroom with kitchen and bar area.
The design may look like a McLaren had a baby with Big Ben, but this 40ft palace on wheels defeats the need to ever stay in a luxury hotel again. Featuring a 510bhp diesel engine, this RV can hit up to 93mph on the open road. But if you're thinking the interior of this puppy doesn't have enough room for your mobile garden party, think again...
... because the interior extends, creating a massive 430sqft living space.
Step into the driver's seat of leather-clad rotating loungers that also give you wireless access to control everything from the temperature to security cameras. You can even call for help in case you get hurt spelunking, skeet shooting, or doing whatever other activities millionaire adventurers do.
The interior is plush with everything a road warrior millionaire could ask for. This living room area hydraulically lifts to become a full bar and features a fireplace and two flat screen TVs. But that's not all...
... the master suite is lavish with an in-room bath, complete with a rainfall shower head that'll get you beyond squeaky clean.
Head up to the roof to gaze at the stars, or just recreate the Big Pimpin' video on land with the push-button retractable skydeck that also features a heated floor.
And if the IRS hasn't caught up to you yet, check out this video for even more features of the mobile tax-shelter.
First Listen
First Listen is another great site brought to you by NPR where you can listen to select previews of artists upcoming albums in their entirety. How cool is that? Cool enough that I had to share it with all of you!
When you get to the site, you’ll see the featured album previews on the main page, and a link at the bottom that takes you to the Full Archive. The navigation strip at the top takes you back to the NPR’s music home, so that’s not what you’re looking for unless you want to explore the rest of what NPR has to offer musically.
The important thing to note: Full Listens are only available for a limited time. So how do you know if you can listen? Well there will be a Play button with the word Listen beneath it. If the audio has expired, where that play button was will be a Read button. So even after the audio is gone you can still read the article on the artist.
This is a very cool way to discover new music, and learn about artists. Or to check out your favorite artist’s latest offering.
http://www.npr.org/series/98679384/first-listen
Celebs Singing 'Let It Be'
Video from Gylne tider (Golden times), a Norwegian television series.
How Your Brain Completes Shapes
The human eye sees objects in their entirety before perceiving their individual parts, suggesting the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Your brain completes shapes based on prior information. You don't see dots, you see a dog.
Are Beer Bellies A Myth?
Are beer bellies a myth? Well, beer drinkers, rejoice - yes, the beer belly is a myth. The main source of calories in any alcoholic beverage is alcohol. There's nothing magical about the alcohol in beer, it's just alcohol," says Charles Bamforth, a professor of food science and technology at the University of California Davis.
The myth might result from the notion that beer drinkers take in more calories. A bottle of beer is typically 12 ounces while a glass of wine is typically 5 ounces.
Beautiful Strange And Rare Cloud Formations
image credit: Daniela Mirner Eberl cc
Some cloud formations can be one of the most beautiful sights in nature, but these masses of liquid droplets are also a complex and scientifically interesting phenomena.
Flying Bike
This flying bike is a prototype developed by a consortium of three Czech companies. That's not a real person flying the bike, that's a test dummy.
7 Old Wives' Tales About Cooking Steak That Need To Go Away
Should you let a thick steak rest at room temperature before you cook it? Should you flip your steak only once? Can you use a fork to turn your steak? Serious Eats puts to rest seven of the most stubborn myths about grilling steaks.
Containerization
image credit: s_volenszki cc
is a tumblr blog that attempts to capture the beauty, mystery and intrigue of shipping containers.
12 Brilliant Bionic Animals
These heart-plucking pictures show you what humans can do to assist disabled creatures. Whether they use bits of toy cars or ground breaking technology, clever, caring humans have given these amazing animals a brand new lease of life.
World's Smallest Museum Finds The Wonder In Everyday Objects
Tucked away in a lower Manhattan back alley, the freight-elevator-sized, generically namedMuseum is one of New York City's newest curiosities. While it's only open 16 hours a week, during the day on Saturdays and Sundays, the museum's contents are viewable 24/7, lit and sealed by glass doors.
Inside are collections of seemingly mundane objects - toothpaste tubes, potato-chip bags, kid's backpack - that highlight how bizarre they actually are. Passers-by are encouraged to call a toll-free number to learn about the 15 collections, comprising 200 objects.
Quick and Easy
A hot grill and a great cut of beef are the basic ingredients for the perfect summertime steak. Add in a tangy marinade and some delicious sides, and it's a cookout.
Featured Recipe
Sirloin Steak with Garlic Butter
By: Solana
I have never tasted any other steak that came even close to the ones made with this recipe.
Grilling Tips and Videos
Get the Gunk Out
Is your grill a little worse for wear? Get it back into fighting shape with an easy cleaning.
Summer Fun
Dinner turns into a party when you cook outside on the grill. These favorites make summer fun.
Allrecipes Magazine
Cook up 5-star dishes every time with the new Allrecipes Magazine.
Summer Desserts
Sweet Cobblers and Crisps
Summer sun, fresh fruit, and homemade cobblers. Can you think of a better trio?
US To Arm Syrian RebelsThe U.S. will provide direct "military support" to the Syrian rebels following U.S. intelligence conclusions that President Bashar al-Assad's forces have used chemical weapons on a "small scale" in the civil war that has claimed more than 90,000 lives. Read More
5 Reasons to Eat Raspberries
If you want a delicious way to add fiber and antioxidants to your diet, look no further than raspberries. One of my seasonal favorites, raspberries are an aggregate fruit, meaning that smaller sections with seeds and fruit create a larger whole. Raspberries have significant nutritional value - they:
- Are a good source of vitamin C and fiber.
- Provide folate, vitamins B2 and B3, magnesium and other essential nutrients.
- Contain ellagitannins, natural health-protective compounds that appear to have potent anti-cancer activity.
- Have considerable antioxidant activity (50 percent more than strawberries).
- Place in the top 15 of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition's best antioxidant sources.
For a quick and simple nutritional boost, top your oatmeal with raspberries, add some to a smoothie or salad, use them in sauces and baked goods, or enjoy them on their own. As with other berries, because commercial strains may be heavily sprayed with pesticides, I recommend buying only organic varieties.
Use raspberries in this refreshing summer drink!
Secret Trade Agreements Threaten to Undo Our Last Shreds of Food Safety
Katherine Paul, Ronnie Cummins, AlterNet
You could soon be eating imported seafood, beef or chicken products that don’t meet even basic U.S. food safety standards. READ MORE»
Texas Students Thrown in Jail for Days ... as Punishment for Missing School?
Joaquin Sapien, ProPublica
Texas's solution to truancy appears to be making kids miss even more school as they sit in jail. READ MORE»
Mark Ames, Not Safe for Work Corporation
The Boston Bombers' ties to Chechnya and Dagestan must come to light if we're ever going to get to the bottom of "why" they did it. READ MORE»
10 of the Most Lied About Drugs
By Tony O'Neill, The Fix
The hysteria over drugs like Spice, bath salts and kratom is drowning out the facts. READ MORE»
Police Trained to Treat Keystone XL Protesters as 'Terrorists'
By Alyssa Figueroa, AlterNet
Peaceful environmental protesters framed as criminals? Guess who’s scared of people power… READ MORE»
Should Men Avoid Posting Naked Selfies If They Want to Score Online Dates?
By Jodie Gummow, AlterNet
What your profile picture is telling women about you. READ MORE»
Edward Snowden: How the Intelligence Story of the Age Leaked Out
By Ewen MacAskill, The Guardian
A full report on how Snowden came to release the NSA documents, as well as why he chose to speak to the Guardian. READ MORE»
When a Woman Wants Sex Like a Man -- Why Do We Deny the Intensity of Female Lust?
By Tracy Clark-Flory, Salon
Writer and academic Katherine Angel bares all in a strikingly honest book about women's desire, and her own sexuality. READ MORE»
By Rebecca Solnit, Tom Dispatch
What darkness and the far north have to do with creativity and empathy.READ MORE»
After every flight, pilots fill out a form called a gripe sheet, which
conveys to the mechanics problems encountered with the aircraft during
the flight that need repair or correction. The mechanics read and correct
the problem, and then respond in writing on the lower half of the form
what remedial action was taken, and the pilot reviews the gripe sheets
before the next flight.
Never let it be said that ground crews and engineers lack a sense of
humor!
Here are some actual logged maintenance complaints and problems as
submitted by Qantas pilots and the solution recorded by maintenance
engineers.
(P = the problem logged by the pilot.)
(S = the solution and action taken by the engineers.)
P: Left inside main tire almost needs replacement.
S: Almost replaced left inside main tire.
P: Test flight OK, except auto-land very rough.
S: Auto-land not installed on this aircraft.
P: Something loose in cockpit.
S: Something tightened in cockpit.
P: Dead bugs on windshield.
S: Live bugs on back-order.
P: Autopilot in altitude-hold mode produces a 200 feet per minute descent.
S: Cannot reproduce problem on ground.
P: Evidence of leak on right main landing gear.
S: Evidence removed.
P: DME volume unbelievably loud.
S: DME volume set to more believable level.
P: Friction locks cause throttle levers to stick.
S: That's what they're there for.
P: IFF inoperative.
S: IFF always inoperative in OFF mode.
P: Suspected crack in windshield.
S: Suspect you're right.
P: Number 3 engine missing.
S: Engine found on right wing after brief search.
P: Aircraft handles funny.
S: Aircraft warned to straighten up, fly right, and be serious.
P: Target radar hums.
S: Reprogrammed target radar with lyrics.
P: Mouse in cockpit.
S: Cat installed.
3 Great ECOLOGY TIPS:
1) If you buy "long life" products (such as batteries and light bulbs) or "concentrated" products, (such as juices or detergents) you not only prevent buying unnecessary packaging, but you prevent more products from ending up in a landfill!
2) If you buy less disposable items or none at all (cloth napkins, towels and diapers instead of paper ones), you prevent more things from ending up in a landfill, and you don't use any packaging.
3) If you bring your own bags to the store with you, you not only prevent having to recycle additional bags, you recycle an existing bag.
It doesn't just make you sleepy. Side effects
may include memory problems and depression.
Take Quiz ›
• How to Fall Asleep Quickly 
• Reasons Why You're So Exhausted
• On Facebook: Ready to Sail Into the Weekend?
How the Syrian Civil War Is Engulfing the Entire Middle East
Patrick O. Strickland, AlterNet
Syria's crisis has spread to Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq—and it's only going to get worse. READ MORE»
Jesse Rosenfeld, AlterNet
Istanbul's revolt enters a new stage as a heavy-handed police force battles youth protesters. READ MORE»
New Film 'Dirty Wars' Exposes America's Ruthless, Covert Wars
Alyssa Figueroa, AlterNet
Jeremy Scahill’s new documentary reveals how dirty wars take innocent lives and make us less safe. READ MORE»
Bradley Manning Trial Starts: 5 Things You Need to Know
By Alex Kane, AlterNet
The trial of Bradley Manning has broad implications for the press and is the most striking example of the Obama administration's war on whistleblowers. READ MORE»
By Bill Fletcher, Jr., AlterNet
The government of the Philippines has continued to harass the opposition and extrajudicially kill dissenters. READ MORE»
By Fred Branfman, AlterNet
It's evil, lawless and authoritarian. And as NSA leaker Snowden has shown us, its aims are to be all-powerful. READ MORE»
Russia Hints It Could Protect NSA Whistleblower Edward Snowden
By Alex Kane, AlterNet
The comments are a way to needle the U.S. from a country often criticized for human rights abuses and crackdowns on their own whistleblowers. READ MORE»
Britain's Late Epiphany: Colonialism in Kenya Was Brutal and Torturous
By Sreeram Chaulia, Foreign Policy in Focus
The British government has offered to pay compensation to over 5,000 survivors of their torture policies in Kenya. READ MORE»
One in Eight People Go Hungry As World's Richest Countries Gather for G8 Meeting
By Bill Nighy, Comment Is Free
Leaders might consider something radical: tackling the forgotten scandal of hunger. READ MORE»
By Mark Ames, Not Safe for Work Corporation
The Boston Bombers' ties to Chechnya and Dagestan must come to light if we're ever going to get to the bottom of "why" they did it. READ MORE»
The Shocking Amount of Wealth and Power Held by 0.001% of the World Population
By Andrew Gavin Marshall, Occupy.com's Global Power Project
The level of inequality around the world is truly staggering. READ MORE»
Spy vs. Spy in the Cyber Age: China and the U.S. Enter a New Arena of Superpower Rivalry
By Brendan O'Reilly , Asia Times
Accusations of state-sanctioned cyber attacks are flying back and forth as a covert program of Internet data mining in the U.S. is revealed.READ MORE»
Our Government's Secrecy Has Caused Far More Deaths Than 9/11
By Chase Madar, TomDispatch
Bradley Manning has done more for U.S. security than SEAL Team 6.READ MORE»
Thousands of Women March Against Guatemala's Decision to Annul Military Dictator's Sentence
By Marta Molina, Waging Nonviolence
A female-led movement for justice follows the overturning of former dictator Efraín Ríos Montt's genocide conviction. READ MORE»
Why President Obama's War on Terror Speech Was Full of Half-Truths and Deception
By Ray McGovern, Consortium News
Obama's record on drone strikes and Guantanamo should produce doubt about the president's resolve to do right. READ MORE»
Here are some simple things you can do
every day to keep your joints feeling great.
View Slideshow ›
• Most Common Symptoms of MS
• 6 Surprising Sleep Wreckers
• Is Psoriasis Contagious?
What's Causing Your Heartburn?
Eager to break free of digestive discomfort? If acid reflux
is an ongoing annoyance, you'll find personalized tips here.
Get Started ›
• Lifestyle Changes to Ease Heartburn
• Tips to Stop Heartburn at Night
• Warning Signs of Ulcerative Colitis
The Man in the Iron Mask
Harry Bentley was his name. His story is incredible.
Saving Ford from Ford.
Jurassic Park’s Stars Would Be Very Different Animals If the Film Were Made Today. (viaSmithsonian)
Rogue State: How Far-Right Fanatics Hijacked Kansas. (via Metafilter)
12 Old Words that Survived by Getting Fossilized in Idioms.
The Water Witch of Wyoming.
Masters of Their Domain.
Cake, Please! Illustrations of animals with delicious desserts. (via Everlasting Blort)
Kawasaki’s Digital Kowloon Walled City. A game palace in Japan is modeled after the erstwhile Hong Kong slum. (viamental_floss)
What Happens to Women Who Are Denied Abortions?
Meet the oarfish, which can grow to be 26 feet long!
31 Strange Medical Conditions
Don't watch this if you tend to hypochondria. You may be convinced you have a really rare condition.
Sunbaff
Adela Tells It Like It Is
When this zinger came up during a video shoot, Mom and Dad decided this short clip was the perfect way to announce the big news to family and friends.
Bonk Beds
Jonathan Allen on America's Got Talent
Jonathon Allen's parents kicked him out because he is gay, but the audience loves him (and why not?). He can go a long way as a singer.
Dog masters cow grates
Evolution of Superman’s Big S
World’s Smallest Museum Finds Wonder in Everyday Objects
How Do Mosquitoes Survive Rainstorms?
How the “Ultimate Batting Practice“ video was faked
Celebrity Before and After Photoshop 
22 Movie facts you may find interesting
How do you move a bridge in one piece?
How Millennial are you? FYI: I’m a 46 … Whatever that means.
A pretty cool movie quiz – Clockbusters
Secret life of the cat Cat Tracker
Breastfeeding In Public Causes Traffic Jam
7 Old Wives’ Tales About Cooking Steak
B-42 … You’re clear to land
Sleep Safe Eyeball Stickers
Eyeball Licking
Apparently it’s a craze sweeping Japan.
For those inclined there a plenty of eyeball licking videos on YouTube.
PB&J Sandwich Is Racist
The making of a racist PB&J sandwich …
Is it Friday yet?
B&P reader Greg VA has a blog where he dabbles in things of old. He sometimes shares his finds on our Weekend Open Mics. He also likes to doodle and has created some interesting brown paper sack doodles which he displays at littleguycomix.
Red Skelton – - Pledge of Allegiance
On this Flag Day in the US we look back as the late comedian Red Skelton shares his prophetic views of the American pledge of allegiance to the flag, recorded 44 years ago in 1969, on his CBS television series “The Red Skelton Show”.
Jack Black
Half Lives: Why the Part-time Economy Is Bad for Everyone
Lynn Stuart Parramore, AlterNet
In America today, a whole job is increasingly hard to find. READ MORE»
Why Elizabeth Warren’s Plan For Student Debt is an Economic Breakthrough
Ellen Brown, Web of Debt blog
Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s “Bank on Students Loan Fairness Act” has been denounced as populist demogoguery. Here's why it isn't. READ MORE»
Obama Nominates America’s Biggest Walmart Cheerleader as His Chief Economic Adviser
Lynn Stuart Parramore, AlterNet
Jason Furman thinks Walmart is a “progressive success story.” READ MORE»
One in Eight People Go Hungry As World's Richest Countries Gather for G8 Meeting
By Bill Nighy, Comment Is Free
Leaders might consider something radical: tackling the forgotten scandal of hunger. READ MORE»
The Shocking Amount of Wealth and Power Held by 0.001% of the World Population
By Andrew Gavin Marshall, Occupy.com's Global Power Project
The level of inequality around the world is truly staggering. READ MORE»
What's the Real Story on How Much Obamacare is Going to Cost?
By Yves Smith, Naked Capitalism
Early calls on costs may be premature, especially given rising corporatization of healthcare. READ MORE»
Investing in Education Creates More Than Twice as Many Jobs as Military Spending
By Jaisal Noor, The Real News Network
"Even on strictly economic terms, on job creation terms, invest in education. ... It's the single best route to creating jobs right now." READ MORE»
Fraternity Prank Made African American Mail Carrier Haul 79 Boxes Labelled "F*ggot N*gger" Backward
Steven Hsieh, AlterNet
"I was humiliated," said the U.S. Post carrier. READ MORE»
26 Members of Congress to Live Off Food Stamp Budget to Protest Cuts
Rebecca Leber, Think Progress
Could you eat off $4.50 a day? READ MORE»
BEST VIDEO OF THE DAY: This Union-Made Dance Video Actually Kicks Ass
Steven Hsieh, AlterNet
Working America demonstrates through dance the power of coworker collectivism. READ MORE»
Sailing to Save The Polynesian Islands From Climate Destruction
By Imani Altemus-Williams, Waging Nonviolence
The Hōkūleʻa will sail worldwide for four years. READ MORE»
AlterNet Comics: Tom Tomorrow on NSA Surveilance
By Tom Tomorrow, AlterNet
Behold the five stages of living in a national surveillance state. READ MORE»
Man Beaten to Coma by Border Patrol, Wife Stops Deportation
By Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!
And Congress wants $6.5 billion for border "security." READ MORE»
Locked Up On A 10-Year Drug Sentence, Cameron Douglas Writes An Op-Ed From Prison
By Anthony Papa, AlterNet
The son of actor Michael Douglas spoke from behind bars to condemn the way our criminal justice system treats drug addicts like him. READ MORE»
Why Elizabeth Warren’s Plan For Student Debt is an Economic Breakthrough
By Ellen Brown, Web of Debt blog
Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s “Bank on Students Loan Fairness Act” has been denounced as populist demogoguery. Here's why it isn't. READ MORE»
WATCH: Colbert Skewers WSJ over Rant Against 'Totalitarian' Bikeshare Program
AlterNet
What does Citibike have to do with the "advent of the vertical, interior be-cabled car"? READ MORE»
By Kevin Zeese, Margaret Flowers, AlterNet
Change starts with action, and each of us has a way to contribute. READ MORE»
From Allison Bean, your About This Week Editor
On About.com this week, we've got ways to celebrate Father's Day and tips for looking younger. Plus: why mosquitoes keep biting you. Want more fromAbout.com? "Like" us on Facebook andfollow us on Twitter.
Why Are Mosquitoes Attracted to Some People?
Do you ever get the feeling that all the mosquitoes in the area are out to get you? That's not just your entomophobia talking—it's been proven that mosquitoes are attracted to some people over others. So why are mosquitoes biting you?
Search Related Topics: bees ants flies
Twenty Questions to Ask Your Dad
Father's Day is on Sunday (Hi Dad!), so instead of the usual banal conversation starters ("How's things?" "Catch the game last night?"), how about you reallytalk to your pop? Dig a little deeper and ask him one of these thought-provoking questions—you may learn something new!
Search Related Topics: interviewing parents questions to ask your father personal history interviews
In the immortal words of the Rolling Stones: You can't always get what you want—especially if you throw the grown-up version of a temper tantrum, complete with screaming and fist shaking. Follow these smart tips and you're more likely to get the response you deserve—no foot-stomping necessary.
Search Related Topics: manners proper etiquette business relationships
Look Younger in 6 Simple Steps (Really!)
Despite what Hollywood stars may lead you to believe, you don't need to get Botox injections the second your first forehead wrinkle appears. Turn back time with these easy beauty tricks.
Some Racist Bullies Picked A Fight With An 11-Year-Old Kid And Lost In Glorious Patriotic Splendor
KAPOW: Oprah Just Bit The Head Off Of The Anti-Gay Marriage Bat
I Wish I'd Seen This At 3 Years Old Instead Of 30. I'd Be A Better Person Today.
From around the web:
Popular Seattle Teacher Forced Out for Teaching Kids About Racism
[Onion] Obama Administration Releases Nation's Phone Records To Public
It's High Time We Abolished the Department of Homeland Security
By Thom Hartmann, AlterNet
It's the path to national sanity. READ MORE»
Cop Shot Litter of Kittens in Front of Screaming Children
By Kristen Gwynne, AlterNet
Nonetheless, the police department chief says this cop did nothing wrong. READ MORE»
Cops Plead Guilty to Helping Plant Drugs on Woman Sexually Harassed by Judge
By Clarence Walker, Drug War Chronicle
A judge responded to an assault victim by demanding sex in exchange for 'legal favors.' She filed a complaint, and he sent cops to plant meth in her car. READ MORE»
By Laura Barcella, Salon
I never believed in that diagnosis -- until I dated Jack, and saw what it was like to be powerless to your desires READ MORE»
Why Libertarians Are Basically Cult Members
By Michael Lind, Salon
Simply note libertarianism's fatal flaw and you'll get an enraged, hysterical response. They still don't get it READ MORE»
8 Most Un-Christian Things the Christian Right Has Done Recently
By Amanda Marcotte, AlterNet
When it comes to using religion as a weapon to push hard-right ideology, un-Christian behavior runs rampant. READ MORE»
By Katie Halper, Salon
The insane double standard of stand your ground laws. READ MORE»
The Shocking Amount of Wealth and Power Held by 0.001% of the World Population
By Andrew Gavin Marshall, Occupy.com's Global Power Project
The level of inequality around the world is truly staggering. READ MORE»
6 Little-Known Facts About Nipples
By Ducky Doolittle, Kinkly
Nipples are more interesting than one would think. READ MORE»
Catholic School Fires Teacher for Being a Domestic Violence Survivor
By Steven Hsieh, AlterNet
“I mean that’s why women of domestic violence don’t come forward."READ MORE»
Cops Plead Guilty to Helping Plant Drugs on Woman Sexually Harassed by Judge
Clarence Walker, Drug War Chronicle
A judge responded to an assault victim by demanding sex in exchange for 'legal favors.' She filed a complaint, and he sent cops to plant meth in her car. READ MORE»
Should 911 Callers Reporting Overdose Be Susceptible to Drug Charges?
Tessie Castillo, AlterNet
New laws seek to encourage life-saving 911 calls by protecting people who overdose or call for help from drug charges. READ MORE»
10 of the Most Lied About Drugs
Tony O'Neill, The Fix
The hysteria over drugs like Spice, bath salts and kratom is drowning out the facts. READ MORE»
WA State Moves to Regulate Marijuana -- What You Need to Know About the Groundbreaking Reform
By Phillip Smith, Drug War Chronicle
Voters in the state approved marijuana legalization in November. Now, it's time to establish a system to tax-and-regulate. READ MORE»
Locked Up On A 10-Year Drug Sentence, Cameron Douglas Writes An Op-Ed From Prison
By Anthony Papa, AlterNet
The son of actor Michael Douglas spoke from behind bars to condemn the way our criminal justice system treats drug addicts like him. READ MORE»
Top 10 Reasons to Legalize Marijuana Now
By Carmen Yarrusso, Truthout
Prohibition creates, sustains and handsomely rewards the illegal drug industry while pretending to fight that very same industry. READ MORE»
Lending a Hand
The tricks by which a shop-lifter succeeds in plying her profession without being caught are many and ingenious. The most successful of all tricks is the false arm and hand, shown in one of the illustrations. While the shop-lifter’s hands are apparently in sight of the store clerks, one is at work stowing away articles. The false hand is, of course, gloved and thrust through one of the sleeves. The real hand works under cover of the bodice and coat. The second illustration shows one of the pockets in which stolen articles are secreted.
– Popular Mechanics, September 1908
Great Minds
In 1784, French architect Étienne-Louis Boullée proposed building an enormous cenotaph for Isaac Newton, a cypress-fringed globe 500 feet high. The physicist’s sarcophagus would rest on a raised catafalque at the bottom of the sphere; by day light would enter through holes pierced in the globe, simulating starlight, and at night a lamp hung in the center would represent the sun.
“I want to situate Newton in the sky,” Boullée wrote. “Sublime mind! Vast and profound genius! Divine being! Newton! Accept the homage of my weak talents. … O Newton! … I conceive the idea of surrounding thee with thy discovery, and thus, somehow, surrounding thee with thyself.”
As far as I can tell, this is unrelated to Thomas Steele’s proposal to enshrine Newton’s house under a stone globe, which came 41 years later. Apparently Newton just inspired globes.
Roasted Bacon Wrapped Brussels Sprouts
Brussels Sprouts. Has there ever been two more maligned words in the English language? Brussels sprouts… Objects of ridicule and scorn. Every child’s worst nightmare.
My brother is famous in our family for his hatred of brussels sprouts. He used to hide them in his napkin, then behind the curtains in the dining room, where my mom found them days later. But considering how they were probably cooked, his hatred was understandable. Many of us grew up eating brussels sprouts when the preferred cooking method of the time was to just boil the hell out of it. The brussels sprouts we ate as youngsters were not fresh, probably frozen, and served without any kind of sauce. Yuck!
Modern day cooks know how to bring out the flavor of sprouts. Brussels sprouts are one of those vegetables whose flavor and texture vastly improves via the roasting process. Roasting brings out the savory, nutty, complex flavor of brussels sprouts. Roasting is like an extreme makeover for brussels sprouts, transforming them from something feared into something fantastic.
And wrapping the sprouts in bacon makes them (of course) even better! The honey dijon marinade imparts a sweet, tangy flavor that pairs very well with the savory flavors of both the sprouts and of bacon. The bacon grease that accumulates in the baking sheet will caramelize the exposed green ends of the sprouts. I guarantee that this recipe will turn even the most devout sprout hater into a sprout lover. Try it on Monday June 17th to celebrate National “Eat Your Veggies” Day.
Note: I used herb bacon to wrap the sprouts. If you use non-herb bacon, adding your favorite herbs to the marinade would be fine.
Ingredients:
• 1 lb of bacon (the thicker, the better). I used Plump Rump Herbed Bacon.
• 1 lb brussels sprouts
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
• Dried or fresh herbs as desired
• Toothpicks that have been soaked in water (to avoid burning)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Wash brussels sprouts and trim the brown stems. Pat dry and add to a large mixing bowl. Cut large sprouts in half lengthwise.
2. Mix honey and Dijon in a small bowl. Add herbs if desired, and freshly ground black pepper. Pour the marinade over the sprouts and toss to combine.
3. Cut bacon so that it will just fit around the sprout. Wrap bacon around each brussels sprout, securing with a toothpick.
4. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Assemble sprouts green-side down. Cook for approximately 25-30 minutes, turning the sprouts over halfway through. Sprouts are done with the bacon is crispy and cooked.
5. Let cool for 5 min before eating as the sprouts will be very hot. Enjoy!
- See more at: http://bacontoday.com/roasted-bacon-wrapped-brussel-sprouts/#sthash.5Y093ygs.dpuf
Mystery of X-Ray Light from Black Holes Solved
Astrophysicists using high-powered computer simulartions demonstrate that gas spiraling toward a black hole inevitably results in X-ray ...full story
Memory improved in mice injected with a small, drug-like molecule discovered by researchers studying how cells respond to biological stress. ... > full story
A Turbocharger for Nerve Cells: Key Mechanism Boosts the Signaling Function of Neurons in Brain
Locating a car that's blowing its horn in heavy traffic, channel-hopping between football and a thriller on TV without losing the plot, and not forgetting the start of a sentence ... > full story
The Twenty-Fifth State
On June 15, 1836, Arkansas became the twenty-fifth state. Native Americans first inhabited the state and created a thriving culture along the Mississippi River around 500 A.D. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, both the Spanish and the French explored the region. The United States acquired the land from France as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
Panorama of Little Rock, Arkansas,
copyright 1916.
Taking the Long View: Panoramic Photographs, 1851-1991
Arkansas' image has been shaped by many different forces; its physical geography probably had the greatest impact during the state's early development. Major migration routes to the West Coast bypassed the area so that Arkansas remained less densely populated, predominantly rural, and without a major urban area for the first 150 years of its existence as a territory and state. It came to be viewed as a rustic and underdeveloped region. This view was reinforced by a folktale, tune, and drawing all known as "The Arkansas Traveller," which depicted an encounter between a wisecracking, fiddle-playing hillbilly and a sophisticated city slicker. Plays, newspaper columns, books, and radio programs utilizing this theme perpetuated the image into the early 1950s.
Efforts to promote an image appropriate for economic growth and development resulted in marketing strategies using state nicknames that business leaders hoped would evoke positive responses. Arkansas' first unofficial nickname was the Bear State—an attempt to paint Arkansas as a sportsman’s paradise. This nickname was used from the nineteenth to early twentieth centuries but instead only strengthened the already entrenched view of the backwoods hillbilly.
"The Wonder State" became the official state nickname in 1923. Former Governor Charles H. Brough, an adept public speaker, was charged with promoting this new image. This campaign also met with little success. Again, the image of a state populated by backward hillbillies prevailed. Around this time, two Arkansans, Chester Lauck and Norris Goff, seized the opportunity to create characters that dispensed advice, jokes, and rural philosophy from the Arkansas hill country. Their radio program, the Lum and Abner show, was an immediate hit with an audience looking for humor during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
In the 1940s, another group of Little Rock businessmen sought to change the state's image in order to encourage economic development. They chose "Land of Opportunity" as the state nickname to align with their efforts to recruit major corporations to relocate to Arkansas. This nickname became official in 1953 and under the leadership of Winthrop Rockefeller, the state began to reap benefits from outside corporate investors. Negative publicity once again interfered, as Little Rock's Central High School desegregation crisis erupted. This latest nickname weathered the crisis in Little Rock, however, and remained intact as the state began to experience population growth as a result of the "Sunbelt Movement" in the 1970s. Retirees as well as people seeking less populated regions with seasonal climates found what they were looking for in Arkansas. Tourism became an important aspect of the state's economy.
Business leaders once again sought an opportunity to promote a new identity for the state. This time, the state's scenic parks, rivers, wildlife, folklore, and music took center stage. In 1987, the General Assembly approved the nickname "The Natural State"—and promotional efforts came full circle.
The accomplishments of Arkansans in a wide variety of endeavors are the defining parameters for the state's image. From Arkansas natives such as Scott Joplin, the King of Ragtime; Louis Jordan, R&B performer and composer; Maya Angelou, poet and author; Jerry Jones, philanthropist and Dallas Cowboys owner; andBill Clinton, 42nd president of the United States, to Arkansas transplants such as Hattie Wyatt Caraway, first woman elected to the U.S. Senate; Vance Randolph, folklorist; and Winthrop Rockefeller, philanthropist and politician; the state has made an impressive contribution to U.S. history and heritage.
Arkansas River at Fort Smith, Arkansas,
circa 1912.
Taking the Long View: Panoramic Photographs, 1851-1991
- Search on Arkansas in the Cities and Towns section of American Memory's Map Collections. View the Perspective map of Van Buren, Ark. and use the zoom feature to see churches, factories, railroads, steamboats, and much more in remarkable detail.
- Search American Memory's African American History collections and the Library's Online Exhibitions to find items documenting Arkansas' civil rights struggles. For example, read aboutDaisy Bates and the Little Rock Nine during the desegregation crisis at Little Rock's Central High School.
- American Memory collections from the Library's Archive of American Folk Song (now the Archive of Folk Culture) and New Deal agencies such as the Farm Security Administration and Works Progress Administration amply represent Arkansas. Search on Arkansas in the following collections to find photographs, recordings, and narratives:
- America from the Great Depression to World War II: Photographs from the FSA-OWI, 1935-1945
- Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers’ Project, 1936-1938
- California Gold: Northern California Folk Music From the Thirties
- Southern Mosaic: the John and Ruby Lomax 1939 Southern States Recording Trip
- Voices from the Dust Bowl: The Charles L. Todd and Robert Sonkin Migrant Worker Collection, 1940-1941
- Learn to play a version of The Arkansas Traveller or listen to a performance of it by searching American Memory's Performing Arts collections. An especially lively version performed by John Stone is found in California Gold: Northern California Folk Music From the Thirties.
Young Arkansas Farmer,
Farm Security Administration Cooperative Farm,
Lake Dick, Arkansas,
Dorothea Lange, photographer,
August 1939.
America from the Great Depression to World War II: Photographs from the FSA-OWI, 1935-1945
Arkansas Sharecropper,
Ozark Mountain area, Arkansas,
Ben Shahn, photographer,
October 1935.
America from the Great Depression to World War II: Photographs from the FSA-OWI, 1935-1945
California Folk Music Project
…I found their music beautiful and important and…wanted it preserved as it truly was for future generations to hear.
Sidney Robertson Cowell
Mary MacPhee,
Berkeley, California,
June 15, 1939.
California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties Collected by Sidney Robertson Cowell
On June 15, 1939, in Oakland, California, folk music collector Sidney Robertson Cowell recorded Mary MacPhee performing Gaelic songs from the Hebrides, Scotland. The collection California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties Collected by Sidney Robertson Cowell contains these a cappella performances as well as still photographs, drawings, and written documents from a variety of European ethnic and English- and Spanish-speaking communities in Northern California. On the dust jacket of MacPhee's recording of "Hi Oro 's Na Horo Eile" Cowell noted, "This she sang to her husband when they were courting."
Cowell's California Folk Music Project was one of the earliest large-scale ethnographic surveys of regional American folk music. In order to accomplish her mission, Cowell organized a consortium of three institutions. The Works Progress Administration (WPA), a massive employment relief program launched by the Roosevelt administration in 1935, offered funds to hire approximately twenty people. The provided space and equipment for the project. And, the Archive of American Folk Song (now The Archive of Folk Culture, American Folklife Center) of the Library of Congress supplied 237 twelve-inch acetate recording discs and a repository for their safekeeping.
The collection is quite diverse. For example, Cowell recorded Anglo, Armenian, and Croatian performers.
John Stone Playing Fiddle,
Columbia, California,
August 5-6, 1939.
"Buffalo Girls"
performed by John Stone on violin,
Columbia, Tuolumne County, California,
August 6, 1939.
Tuning Mechanism of Qanun,
Fresno, California,
April 22, 1939.
"Song of Freedom"
performed by Aslanian's Armenian Orchestra,
Bedros Haroutunian on qanun,
Columbia, Tuolumne County, California,
April 23, 1939.
John Botica Playing the Misnice,
Mountain View, California,
May 26, 1938, or January 11, 1939.
"Dalmation Dance #1, Poskocina"
performed by John Botica, on misnice,
Mountain View, California,
May 26, 1938.
- Also of interest are Sidney Robertson Cowell's recollections concerning her work and the people whose songs she recorded. Listen, for example, to her comments about the Russian Molokan Congregation in San Francisco.
- Find out more about the ethno-musical material assembled by Cowell and her colleagues. Browse one of the indexes which are arranged by Subject, Ethnic Groups, Performers, Musical Instruments, and Audio Titles and may be found on the home page, California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties Collected by Sidney Robertson Cowell. Also, see the Today in History feature on Italian folk music, also collected by Cowell in San Francisco.
- Voices from the Dust Bowl documents life in Farm Security Administration (FSA) migrant work camps in central California (1940-41). The collection is rich in music that complements that of the Cowell collection.
- See the American Memory list of Performing Arts collections for more music materials including theDayton C. Miller Flute Collection and the sheet music collections: Music for the Nation: American Sheet Music, 1820-1860 & 1870-1885 and Historic American Sheet Music, 1850-1920.
- Visit the Performing Arts Encyclopedia, the Library's performing arts digital library for more collections and special presentations on the diversity of America's performing arts.
SATURDAY - JUNE 15, 2013
TODAY’S FOOD QUOTE
“Pray for peace and grace and spiritual food,
For wisdom and guidance, for all these are good,
but don't forget the potatoes.”
John Tyler Pettee 'Prayer and Potatoes'
FOOD HOLIDAYS - Today is:
- National Lobster Day
- Key West Conch Fritter Day
- Potatoe Day (see 1992 below)
- Feast of Saint Germaine Cousin, patron of shepherdesses.
- Men’s Health Week (June 10-16, 2013)
- UK: Food Safety Week (June 10-16, 2013)
TODAY IN FOOD HISTORY
On this day in:
1752 Benjamin Franklin flew a kite.
1844 Charles Goodyear was granted Patent No. 3633 for vulcanization, a rubber curing process which converts natural rubber into a more durable material.
1851 Jacob Fussell, a Baltimore dairyman, opens the first commercial ice-cream factory.
1869 Joseph Dixon died. An American inventor and manufacturer. Among his many accomplishments, he produced the first pencil made in the U.S.
1969 'Ice Cube' (O'Shea Jackson) singer and actor, was born.
1992 SPELLING LESSONS - At a spelling bee in a Trenton, New Jersey school, U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle, corrects a student's spelling of 'potato' by telling him it should have an 'e' at the end.
1999 Nicholas Vitalich is arrested for assaulting his girlfriend with a large tuna, outside a San Diego supermarket. He was charged with assault with a deadly weapon.
DID YOU KNOW?
Antoine-Auguste Parmentier was a 18th century agronomist who convinced the common French people to accept the potato as a safe food. He used reverse psychology by posting guards around potato fields during the day to prevent people from stealing them. He left them unguarded at night. So, every night, the thieves would sneak into the fields and leave with sacks of these precious potatoes!
Atlantis: The Lost Empire is the first science fiction film in Disney's animated features canon and the 41st overall. Set in 1914, the film tells the story of a young man who gains possession of a sacred book, which he believes will guide him and a crew of adventurers to the lost city of Atlantis. Linguist Marc Okrand created an Atlantean language for the film (letter "A" pictured). Atlantis made greater use of computer-generated imagery than any of Disney's previous animated features; it remains one of the few to have been shot inanamorphic format. Atlantis, which adopted the distinctive visual style of comic book creator Mike Mignola, is one of the few Disney animated features not to have songs. The film premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California, on June 3, 2001, and went into general release on June 15. Due to the film's poorer-than-expected box-office performance, Disney quietly canceled both a spin-off television series and an underwater attraction at its Disneyland theme park. Some critics praised it as a unique departure from typical Disney animated features, while others disliked it due to the unclear target audience and absence of songs. (Full article...)
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content:
- ... that Eva Perón established the Salon Rosado in the Palace of the Buenos Aires City Legislature (pictured)as an exclusive space for women politicians, where they could discuss issues without men being present?
- ... that Singaporean entertainer and singer Anna Belle Francis produced Dick Lee's Euranasia?
- ... that Transdev Melbourne will take over operation of 30% of Melbourne, Australia's bus network in August 2013?
- ... that Julia Sand, a pen pal of U.S. President Chester A. Arthur, might have had significant impact on his presidency?
- ... that Burma ranked as one of the most corrupt countries in the world in the 2012 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index ?
- ... that although miler Gene Venzke ran three world records during the 1932 indoor season, he failed to qualify for the Olympicsthat year and only made the team four years later?
- ... that three Royal Australian Air Force aircraft flew 25 tonnes of pig bristles from Chongqing in China to Hong Kong in May 1946?
- The United States Supreme Court unanimously rules that naturally occurring DNA sequences cannotbe patented.
- Scientists discover Dua's layer, a previously unknown part of the human cornea.
- Japanese supercentenarian Jiroemon Kimura, the verified oldest man in history, dies at the age of 116 years, 54 days.
- Greece announces the closure of its public broadcasting corporation, ERT.
- China launches Shenzhou 10, the fifth manned mission of the Chinese space program.
- At the Tony Awards, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike wins Best Play and Kinky Boots wins Best Musical.
Wikinews – More current events...
On this day...
June 15: Flag Day in Denmark; Trooping the Colour and the Queen's Official Birthday in the United Kingdom and several other Commonwealth countries (2013)
- 1215 – King John of England put his seal to Magna Carta.
- 1878 – Eadweard Muybridge took a series of photographs to prove that all four feet of a horse leave the ground when it gallops (animation pictured); the study became the basis of motion pictures.
- 1919 – After nearly 16 hours, the Vickers Vimy flown by John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown crash-landed in County Galway, Ireland, to complete the first non-stop transatlantic flight.
- 1978 – King Hussein of Jordan married American Lisa Halaby, who became known as Queen Noor of Jordan.
- 2001 – Leaders of the People's Republic of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan formed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
Today's featured picture
Experiments in the Revival of Organisms is a controversial 1940 motion picture that documents ostensible Soviet research into the resuscitation of clinically dead organisms, mostly dogs. Narrated in English by J. B. S. Haldane, the film credits Sergei Brukhonenko with the operations.
Film: Techfilm Studio, Moscow
Many kids are plugged in to some kind of media for more than seven hours a day, which means their exposure to advertising is at record levels.
The Battle of Saipan Begins (1944)
With an approximate area of just 45 sq mi (117 sq km), the island of Saipan was the site of some of the fiercest fighting in the Pacific theater of World War II. The US invasion in mid-June surprised the Japanese, who had expected an attack farther south. After a month of brutal fighting, the US captured Saipan and made the island a base for air attacks on the Japanese mainland. About 22,000 Saipan civilians—the majority of the population—died during the battle. Why did many commit suicide?
More...
Overweight Women Predisposed to Preterm Birth
There appears to be a correlation between the body mass index (BMI) of a pregnant woman at her first prenatal visit and her risk of preterm birth. A review of Swedish medical records found that the more overweight a woman was early in her pregnancy, the more likely she was to have a premature baby. Among both overweight and obese women, weight-related maternal complications increased the risk of medically indicated preterm delivery—meaning artificially induced labor or cesarean section. Additionally, obese women were at greater risk of spontaneous extremely preterm delivery, defined for the purposes of the study as between 22 and 27 weeks gestation.
More ...
The Sokal Affair
In 1996, physics professor Alan Sokal submitted a parody article to the journal Social Text to see if the editors would publish it just because it "sounded good" and "flattered" their views. Though Sokal disregarded their requested edits, they still published his article. In a different journal, he revealed that his piece was a hoax meant to expose the unreliable nature of non-peer reviewed publications and the bias of "the academic Left." What was the subject of Sokal's article?
More...
Ion Victor Antonescu (1882)
Antonescu was dictator of Romania during World War II when his country was part of the Axis. He had a close relationship with Adolf Hitler, who lauded the Romanian's "breadth of vision." Antonescu ordered the 1941 Odessa Massacre that claimed the lives of at least 25,000 Jews, though some estimates suggest an even higher death toll. In 1944, Antonescu was overthrown in a coup and later convicted of war crimes and executed. In his final letter to his wife, what did Antonescu encourage her to do?
More...
Syria no-fly zone: US to throw 'gas on the flames'?
The US is debating setting up a no-fly zone across Syria and along Jordan’s border: a matter deemed difficult and costly but still being given serious consideration after disputed claims that nerve gas was used by the Syrian government.
Moderate cleric Rohani leading in Iran elections
Iran’s presidential elections have yielded preliminary results, with moderate cleric Hassan Rohani running ahead of Tehran’s Mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf by a significant lead, and nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, who is just behind Qalibaf.
First Lady of Space: Tereshkova’s flight TIMELINE
It is 50 years since the Vostok-6 rocket took Valentina Tereshkova to orbit, making her the first ever female to conquer space. RT brings the reconstructed timeline of the Russian's historic mission.
Monsanto Video Revolt: Global anti-GMO online rally launches
A new initiative to bypass the corporate media blackout on GMO foods and bring the issue to world attention has been launched. Monsanto Video Revolt is to hit the net in the upcoming weeks, editor of Naturalsociety.com Anthony Gucciardi tells RT.
Snowden’s asset: NSA hacking exposer knows secrets China wants
Edward Snowden could become a valuable asset for China’s cyber security experts if he is persuaded to share the knowledge of American surveillance programs. He has already given information of alleged NSA attacks on Chinese computer networks
Canadian scientists use math to kill cancer
Researchers in Canada are pinning their hopes on advanced mathematics in the fight against cancer, using sophisticated models to enhance engineered viruses that home in on and destroy cancerous cells.
Nazi commander found living in US since 1949, past undetected
A top commander of a Nazi SS-led hit squad and officer in an SS Division, accused of burning villages to the ground during World War II, has been living in Minnesota since 1949 after tricking US immigration officials.
Kickstarter almost enabled a $120,000 fraud, and it’s not the first
@mims
The Kickstarter campaign for Kobe Red beef jerky was yanked just minutes before thousands of backers lost their moneyKickstarter
Kickstarter just narrowly averted what would have been the biggest definitive fraud in the crowdfunding site’s history. It shut down the Kobe Red project, which promised to deliver mouthwatering beef jerky made from Japanese cows fed on 100% organic feed and treated to beer and massages (we’re not making this up)—just an hour before scammers would have successfully made off with $120,309 from the project’s 3,239 backers.
Rather than vetting projects on its own, Kickstarter relies on its own users to report suspicious campaigns. Kobe Red was flagged by, among others, a group of filmmakers who are working on a documentary about Kickstarter.
Here’s a brief video explaining what those documentarians discovered. It included fake testimonials from fake taste-testers, and the usual litany ofbreathless, credulous media coverage that accompanies every Kickstarter launch for a project that could plausibly appeal to the core audience of the online community Reddit.
It’s a problem Kickstarter faces as it grows: The site’s laissez-faire attitude, which has allowed an incredibly diverse range of projects to debut there, also makes it potentially attractive to fraudsters. That said, Kickstarter has launched 102,527 projects to date—with 43,193 reaching the funding stage, when backers’ credit cards are charged—and the amount of fraud appears, anecdotally at least, to be quite small.
It can also be hard to tell the difference between a fraud and a well-intentioned project whose creators just never got their act together. The most notorious such example was ZionEyez, which claimed to stream video directly from a pair of eyeglasses to a person’s Facebook stream. The project netted $343,415 in 2011 and its backers occasionally pop up again, but with nothing to show for all that money. Other maybe-scams include a role-playing video game that was shut down before it finished its funding phase, aluminum dice that already existed and which someone hoped to resell through Kickstarter, and a board game whose creatorsimply disappeared after raising $22,559.
Kickstarter’s position has always been that it’s up to a project’s would-be backers to evaluate its claims. Kickstarter explicitly presents itself as a site for a new kind of arts patronage, rather than a store. Its board members have said that the site simplycannot vet all the projects that people post, and have argued that in general the amounts backers lose are small. The site’s FAQ includes an “accountability” section packed to the brim with caveat emptors about what can happen if a project’s creators don’t follow through on their promises. I asked Kickstarter for comment on this story, and a spokesperson responded that they never comment on the reasons why individual projects are suspended.
However, anyone can make a fraud report, which goes to a “Manager of Trust and Safety.” Kickstarter would not comment on the nature or the existence of this position; the only evidence it exists is that there is currently a job posting for it. Perhaps Kickstarter worries that discussing the position might give the impression that the site’s projects are more vetted than they are, or that doing so is to acknowledge some kind of responsibility for whatever fraud does get through.
Either way, the site may be realizing that, with the kinds of fake testimonials, fawning press coverage and slick promotional video that a project like Kobe Red had, putting all the responsibility for evaluating frauds entirely on a project’s would-be backers just doesn’t cut it any more. Luckily for Kickstarter’s reputation, Kobe Red was shut down in time—but only just.
Meet the cast of Breaking Amish: L.A. The new season of the hit series takes a group of young Amish to the streets of L.A. where they experience life among the 'English' and plot their futures. They all feel that they need to experience something new but are painfully aware about what it could mean for their families. From left to right: Devon, Lizzie, Iva, Betsy and Matthew.
Randy Phillips, CEO of Aeg Live, claimed the legendary star had insisted from the grave that his death was an accident. Speaking at Los Angeles County Superior Court , Mr Phillips is said to have claimed the supernatural encounter was delivered via his friend Brenda Richie, left, the ex-wife of musician Lionel Richie.
Gordon Ramsey is facing a kitchen nightmare of his own as a group current and former employees are preparing to sue the fiery-tempered chef. Staff from the Fat Cow restaurant in Los Angeles claim they haven't been paid and are also owed extra cash for overtime and tips.
U.S. intelligence organizations, including the NSA, CIA and FBI and branches of the U.S. military, call the firms 'trusted partners', sources told Bloomberg.
Despite efforts by Harold and Sue Ann Hamms to keep their divorce proceedings secret, Reuters has learned that the couple never signed a prenuptial agreement when they were married 25 years ago.
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush was among several potential 2016 Republican presidential candidates speaking at the Faith and Freedom Coalition's annual conference in Washington.
Dr Andy Palmer, executive vice-president of Nissan, said research showed half of all women are unhappy with their cars and three-quarters feel 'misunderstood'.
New York Air National Guard airlift wing 'promoted sexual abusers instead of punishing them'
'I can tell you from my firsthand experiences, commanders do not protect the victims or allow any follow up medical assistance,' retired Lt. Col. Sharon Dwyer Stepp said.
Security Theater News: Unicorn Passports Now Accepted
Hmmm… Wonder if that would work here with the Gumby Club ID card I got as a kid…
A nine-year-old schoolgirl has managed to enter Turkey using a passport that identified her as a pink unicorn.
Officials at Antalya airport even stamped Emily Harris’s travel documents before waving her through customs despite the official photograph showing the face of her favourite stuffed toy.
Americans' confidence in Congress as an institution is down to 10%, ranking the legislative body last on a list of 16 societal institutions for the fourth straight year. This is the lowest level of confidence Gallup has found, not only for Congress, but for any institution on record.
And yet we keep electing these bozos.
Americans' Confidence in Congress Falls to Lowest on Record
http://www.gallup.com/poll/163052/americans-confidence-congress-falls-lowest-record.aspx
The quarry pool at Harpur Hill, near Buxton, Derbyshire - known locally as the Blue Lagoon - has a pH level of 11.3, is littered with rubbish and dead animals, and is extremely cold.
But it sure looks tempting -- at least it used to.
Blue Lagoon dyed black to deter swimmers - Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/10112837/Blue-Lagoon-dyed-black-to-deter-swimmers.html
Ashrita has set 462 official Guinness Records since 1979 and currently holds 160 standing records including the official record for "the most records held at the same time by an individual"!!
He should be famous. Have you ever heard of him?
Ashrita Furman | Mr Versatility
Guns, religion, and alcohol. What a great idea.
Lies may be easier to tell and to hear, but they don't make the truth disappear.
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated”
Mahatma Gandhi
If you are the owner of an image on this page and would like it removed, please send an email to rcrockett2000 at yahoo.com with proof of ownership and I will gladly remove the image.